Fence-post



Mel) L. MIDDLETON.

FENCE POST.

No. 554,s91.

Patented Feb. 11, 1896.

ANDREW BGRMAM PHDTO-LITHQWASMNGTONIDC UNITED STATES LEMUEL MIDDLETON, OF RUSSIAVILLE, INDIANA.

FENCE-POST.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 554,391, dated February 11 1896. Application filed July 9,1895. $erial No. 555,366. (No model.)

T 06 whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LEMUEL MIDDLETON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Russiaville, in the county of Howard and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Fence-Post, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in fence-posts.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction'of fence-posts, and to provide one which will be simple, inexpensive, strong and durable, and which will be anchored firmly in the ground sufficient to support a fence in an upright position against the strains exerted by high winds, cattle, and the like.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claim hereto appended.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of a fence-post constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the same.

Like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates a fence-post composed of two similar sides constructed of a single bar of metal bent intermediate of its ends at the top of the post, and having parallel portions to form the upper portion 2 of the fence-post, and the lower portions of the' sides diverge downwardly, and the diverging portions 3 are designed to be embedded in the ground.

The lower ends of the sides ofthe fence post are connected by a transverse rod 4, passing through perforations of the sides of the post, and provided at one end with a head and having its other end threaded and receiving a nut 5.

The sides of the posts are reinforced at the upper terminals of the diverging portions 3 by metal plates 6, which are slightly bent intermediate of their ends, and these plates are located on the outer faces of the sides of the post and are secured thereto by suitable fastening devices. A spacing-block 7 is interconverging or angularly-arranged rods 9, having their inner terminals secured to the lower ends of the sides of the post by the transverse rod 4, and the outerterminals of the horizontal rods are secured by a bolt or other suitable fastening device tothe lower end of an inclined bracing-rod 10. The inclined bracing-rod is interposed between the outer ends of the horizontally-disposed rods 9, and its. upper end is secured between the parallel sides of the upper portion of the fence-post near the top thereof by a bolt 11, or other suitable fastening device. The rods and the post form a truss-frame and provide a rigid construction possessing great strength and durability, and especially adapted for wire fences in which considerable strain is exerted on posts by the tension of the fence-wires.

Fence-wires may be secured between the parallel portions of the sides of the post, and the upper end of the inclined bracing-rod and the block 7 operate to space the sides of the post and preserve the parallelism of the same.

It will be seen that the fence-post is simple and comparatively inexpensive in construction, that it is strong and durable, and that it is provided with a broad base sufficient to afiord a firm anchorage.

Changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

What I claim is- The combination of a post having similar sides constructed of a single piece of metal and provided with parallel upper portions and diverging lower portions, a transverse rod 4 connecting the lower ends of the sides of the post, the angularlydisposed horizontal rods arranged at the bottom of the post and secured In testimony that I claim the foregoing as to the sides thereof by the transverse rod, my own I have hereto affixed my signature in and forming with the rod 4, a rigid triangular the presence of two Witnesses.

base and the inclined bracing-rod secured LELWIUEL MIDDLETON. 5 between the outer ends of the horizontal rods Witnesses:

and between the sides of the post, substan- ED. MORROW,

tially as described. B. F. HORNESS. 

